Cognitive science is reshaping the design conversation, highlighting how every sensory detail from light to texture to layout influences emotion, cognition, and behaviour in the built environment.
By embracing neurodiversity, these three projects ensure that everyone, regardless of cognitive or sensory needs, has access to spaces that foster well-being and belonging.
Centre Lise et Yvon Lamarre, Montréal
Located on the historic grounds of the Cœur-Immaculé-de-Marie church in Montreal’s Sud-Ouest borough, the Centre Lise et Yvon Lamarre provides a rare example of purpose-built housing for autistic adults. Developed by Lemay, the project responds to the city’s shortage of specialized residences and is grounded in the firm’s “Sensory Fragments” research, which investigates how spatial logic and sensory compatibility can foster security, independence, and comfort.
The 16 residents are accommodated in four maisonettes, connected to create a familiar, human-scaled ensemble. Shared spaces encourage social interaction while preserving privacy, and the massing is carefully integrated into its context. A grey brick façade recalls the limestone of the adjacent church, while wood accents and recessed soffits soften the building’s presence. Generous fenestration provides daylight and framed outdoor views, reinforcing orientation and calm.
Inside, sensory regulation drives the design. Muted palettes, natural finishes, and tactile textures establish a soothing baseline, while lighting systems offer flexibility. Dimmable fixtures accommodate varying sensitivities, allowing residents to tailor environments to their needs. Acoustic strategies are equally deliberate: mechanical systems are engineered to minimize background noise, while materials reduce reverberation, creating an acoustically stable interior.
Spatial clarity is reinforced through material contrasts and gently rounded circulation paths that smooth transitions between spaces. Dining areas, sensory rooms, and living zones are subtly distinguished, supporting intuitive wayfinding.
The landscape extends these principles outdoors. Aromatic plantings, textured pathways, and water features invite exploration at different sensory intensities, offering both quiet refuges and more engaging environments.
Sustainability is integral to the project. Designed under Lemay’s NET POSITIVE™ framework, the facility has achieved Zero Carbon Building (ZCB) certification. A high-performance envelope, energy-efficient systems, and low-emission finishes reduce environmental impact while supporting occupant health. Vegetated areas and water-wise landscaping further mitigate heat-island effects and connect residents to nature.
By combining neuroinclusive design with rigorous environmental performance, the Centre Lise et Yvon Lamarre establishes a model for specialized housing that is at once responsive to its residents and rooted in its urban and ecological context.
BMO Academy, Toronto
In Toronto’s downtown core, the new BMO Academy establishes a distinctive presence within BMO Place at Yonge-Dundas. Designed by Zeidler Architecture, the 40,000-square-foot training and collaboration hub extends the firm’s ongoing work at Cadillac Fairview’s Toronto Eaton Centre, offering a contemporary model for corporate learning environments that merge design ambition with accessibility.
The guiding metaphor is water. Zeidler drew inspiration from the ripple effect—an image of movement, influence, and connection—and translated it into architectural form. Long, curving hallways edged with recessed cove lighting echo fluid motion, while the central stair becomes both sculptural anchor and connective device. Its glass and stainless-steel balustrades are offset by natural wood accents and integrated step lighting, balancing refinement with warmth. The palette—soft blue, pale concrete, light wood, and grey—references ocean, stone, and tree rings, reinforcing the natural theme.
The design emphasizes openness and flow without sacrificing acoustical balance. Glass partitions and reflective surfaces allow transparency, while carefully calibrated finishes temper reverberation and ensure clarity. The effect is one of both expansiveness and calm.
Central to the project is its neuroinclusive focus. BMO Academy is programmed for a spectrum of cognitive and physical needs, with spaces adaptable to collaborative workshops, quiet reflection, or hybrid digital learning. Intuitive wayfinding and sensory-conscious detailing reduce overstimulation, while flexible configurations allow the environment to be tailored to individual or group requirements. The result is a learning space that prioritizes inclusivity as much as corporate identity.
“The goal was to create an environment conducive to knowledge sharing by helping users interact with ease irrespective of ability, learning style, or neurological realities. We started with comprehensive space planning that thoughtfully blended the architectural envelope with the clients forward thinking programmatic outline. During this early planning we were able to lay a foundation of inclusivity by implementing proven Universal Design practices starting with accessibility and ease of circulation. This allowed us to drill down on the neuroinclusive strategies in a more nuanced way,” said Ian Franceschi, creative director of interior design at Zeidler Architecture. “By implementing tested modern construction assemblies, engineered materials, and advanced AV technology, we were able to enhance the planning strategies and address sensory regulation, focus, and cognitive variability. This produced a wider range of environments: from quiet zones, and low stimulation areas (both acoustic and visually), to larger flexible gathering and event spaces. All balanced and connected through a cohesive design language and material palette. In short; rather than isolating neuroinclusive design considerations to a few specific “additional” areas, we integrated them into a broader design rationale and used it as a lens through which decisions were made.”
The Academy continues Zeidler’s history of renewal within the Eaton Centre precinct, following interventions such as the revitalization of BMO Place and the restoration of 2 Queen Street West. Positioned directly above BMO’s offices, the Academy maintains a visual and spatial dialogue with the workplace below, reinforcing its dual role as both internal resource and outward-facing venue for stakeholders.
By layering metaphor, material expression, and inclusive design strategies, Zeidler has created more than a corporate training center. BMO Academy demonstrates how architectural narratives—in this case, the ripple of water—can guide the shaping of environments that are not only functional, but also symbolic of growth, connection, and shared knowledge.
“By maintaining an acute focus on individuals’ learning needs and prioritizing the fluidity and flexibility of the learning space, we are empowering BMO’s people to grow and innovate while setting a new standard for accessible learning institutions,” says Sean Crawford, partner at Zeidler.
Sam Ibrahim Building (SIB) at the University of Toronto Scarborough
Leveraging its WISE R&D programme, Danish architects CEBRA transformed the five-storey, 19,300-sq.-m. Sam Ibrahim Centre into what it believes is a neuro-design “exemplar.” The plan unfolds as interlocking “printer’s tray” compartments arranged in concentric rings around a six-tiered grand stair, clustering 20 experientially diverse classrooms, lounges, collaborative pods and a 500-seat hexagonal Innovation Hall. This ripple-inspired layout reduces navigational stress and cues transitions between active, social and low-stimulus zones.
Recessed daylight “harvesting” and tunable LEDs enable automated and occupant-controlled shifts in brightness and color temperature, aligning circadian rhythms and personal preferences. Pale concrete, warm wood strips and textured insets provide reassuring haptic feedback.
Acoustic ceiling clouds, sound-absorbing “Cave” surfaces and soft-goods manage reverberation to ensure speech clarity and calm. Modular walls, movable furnishings and tiered booth niches in the Collaboratorium support flexible group sizes and integrated AV connectivity. The theatre-in-the-round Innovation Hall centers presenters, flattens hierarchy and shortens sightlines to encourage face-to-face exchange.
Among the standout spaces is the campfire-like “theatre round”, whose orientation places the lecturer at the centre of a 500-seat classroom—and whose concrete detailing suggests a visual connection to architect John Andrews’ nearby Brutalist campus icon. Another, dubbed the “Collaboratorium”, supports group work with tiered night-club-esque booths.
Throughout the building, supergraphics aid wayfinding, and also reference the campus’ mid-century architectural lineage.
